Portugal 2-1 Republic of Ireland: 5 talking points as evergreen Cristiano Ronaldo enters the record books yet again | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers 

A late Cristiano Ronaldo brace helped Portugal secure a 2-1 comeback victory over the Republic of Ireland on home turf.

The hosts were looking to bounce back after a disappointing defense of their European Crown, and coach Fernando Santos named a strong XI at the Estadio Algarve.

A fast start to the game saw Portugal handed an early opportunity as referee Matej Jug pointed to the spot after Jeff Hendrick committed a foul in the area.

Cristiano Ronaldo stepped up to take the spot-kick but saw his effort thwarted by Gavin Bazunu.

Diogo Jota hit the post with a header near the half-hour mark, but Portugal went into the break behind, which was against the run of play.

Jamie McGrath whipped in a corner that was headed home by John Egan to give the Republic of Ireland a halftime lead.

The second half was one-way traffic, with Portugal asking all the questions. However, a resolute Irish defense kept them at bay. Just when it looked like the visitors would secure all three points, Cristiano Ronaldo turned the game on its head with two dramatic late headers.

The first of these saw him head home Goncalo Guedes’ cross in the 89th minute to surpass Ali Daei as the highest-scoring international male player in history.

Portugal appealed for a late penalty in injury time, but the referee was unconvinced even after having a VAR review.

It didn’t matter, though, as Cristiano Ronaldo completed a remarkable turnaround with another expertly glanced header in the sixth minute of injury time.

The victory was well-deserved in the overall balance of play, and here are five talking points from the dramatic game at Faro.

#5 Portugal seize the initiative in Group A

Portugal came into the game level on seven points with Serbia, who are due to play Luxembourg in three days’ time.

This gave them an opportunity to go clear at the summit of the table in Group A. Despite making hard work of it, the 2016 European champions ultimately got the job done.

The victory moves Portugal onto 10 points. They are three points clear at the summit of the standings ahead of their trip to take on Azerbaijan next week.

Only the top-placed sides in the groups are guaranteed to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup next year. With this victory, Portugal kept their aspirations for Qatar 2022 on track.

#4 Fernando Santos makes inspired substitutions

Portugal dominated proceedings from start to finish but were let down by a lack of a cutting edge in the final third.

Time and again, the hosts did everything right in the buildup only to go wanting when it came to the final ball.

This led Fernando Santos to make some tactical changes, and two of his substitutes proved to be difference-makers on the night.

Cristiano Ronaldo will expectedly make all the headlines and rightly so, owing to his record-breaking feat. However, credit should also go to the two men who supplied him the crosses.

Both goals came from almost identical positions on the field, and the two men who provided the assists, Joao Mario and Goncalo Guedes, were second-half introductions.